If a card has a bonus to attack and a bonus to directly attack the same
card, are they cumulative? Nope, unless the card specifically says
so.

Agents

Does Immunity give immunity to agents? No. Immunity only applies
to cards in play.

Do changes to a card on the table (such as alignment changes) affect
Agents for that Group? The Agent card in hand has the same alignments
and attributes as the Group in play.

Aiding Attacks

When a Group aids an attack, does it get a +4 if it has a similar alignment,
and/or a -4 for an opposite alignment? No! You must look at the alignment
of a Group (unless it has Global Power) to see if it is eligible to aid
the attack at all, but only the Group that actually makes the attack gets
bonuses or penalties for alignment.

If an aiding Group's action is made illegal (for example, if someone
plays NWO: Apathy), do it get its Action token back? No. (but who cares?)

Any Time

What exactly does this mean? It means that you may do this at any
time, except when a rule or card text clearly says that you can't.

Can I double-up a Group's special
ability by spending its action before reloading Action tokens and then
again after reloading Action tokens (e.g. using the Gay Activists to reverse
the alignments of two Groups for the turn)? No. During the Beginning
of Turn segment of your turn, you may not use Action tokens except to trade
them for Plot cards, to power Plots or special abilities that affect one
of your Beginning-of-Turn phases (e.g. you can use them to affect your
card draws or automatic takeover), or to respond to another Plot, special
ability, or action.

Announcing Bonuses

If I "forget" to mention a defensive bonus, can I tell them after the
dice are rolled? No way! All bonuses for the offense or defense
must be mentioned before the roll or you don't get them.

Attacks

Is there ever a situation when I can roll the dice when the attack strength
is less than 2? Nope.

When does an attack fail? An attack fails when the die roll fails,
or no die roll can be made. An attack that is cancelled, made illegal,
or called off isn't a failure.

If a Group attacks and its action is canceled, can that Group try the
same attack again if it can get another action token? Yes, because
the canceled action never happened.

Can an action be canceled after the dice are rolled? No!

Automatic Takeovers

Are you permitted to skip your automatic takeover if you choose?
Yes.

What if you forget to make your takeover? Do the other players have
to go back and let you make it? No, unless you have a house rule that
says "Always play nicely". It's up to the other players.

Under SubGenius rules, if your Illuminati normally gets more than one
Action token each turn, does taking an automatic takeover cause you to
forfeit all of them or just one? Just one -- if you take an ATO,
your Illuminati gets one fewer token than usual.

Bonuses to Attack

Do I have to use them against my own Groups, for instance, if they are
pointed out to me? Yes -- just as you have to use your full Power and
Resistance. If you missed (intentionally or otherwise) a bonus or penalty
and nobody points it out until after the dice are rolled, this falls under
the Whoops! rule -- you cannot go back and change it. However, you can't
just rush through to prevent the other players from speaking up (that's
speed play, and illegal).

Note that Illuminati closeness bonuses don't apply when you attack your
own Groups, so it doesn't matter if someone (mistakenly) points them out.
If a rival attacks you and you want him to succeed, then the proximity
bonuses would apply if someone points them out.

Bounced First Lead

By a careful reading of the rules, it seems that when you only have
a 7 card Group deck, you are allowed to use a bounced first lead card as
one of the cards you get to redraw. Is this the case? It does seem
to say that, but that is a mistake. You get to draw up to six cards
and don't get to draw your bounced lead Group.

Do cards have "memories" (such as when a place is Devastated) if it
is taken into a player's hand and brought back later? Cards do
have memories of Devastation, permanent links and whatnot. This is made
clear in the WDH. However, all links are temporarily illegal when the card
is in someone's hand.

Card Ownership

When Groups are captured or traded during a game, or when Plot cards
change hands, how do you keep track of who "really" owns the card?
The two best ways are just to make notes whenever a card changes hands,
or to use little bits of sticky-notes, which adhere to the card face without
leaving permanent traces.

Note that a reference to a card's "owner" in the card text or the body
of the rules means whoever controls the card, not its real-life owner.

Are there any cards that let someone "steal" my undrawn Plots or Groups
without telling me what they got? No. When someone steals your cards,
they must show you what they took.

Changing
a Die Roll

There are several cards (e.g. Bribery, Fnord!, Murphy's Law) which say
to play them "immediately after a die roll". If one of these cards
is played, is it possible to play another one to change the die roll again?
Yes. When a Plot or special ability directly changes a die roll, it's just
as if the dice had been rolled again to produce the new number, and the
new roll can be "immediately" changed again.

Committing to an Attack

Does using a duplicate Group card as "agents" commit you to the attack?
Yes. If you play an agents card, you must go through with the attack and
spend that card.

Defense

Defense (as defined in the WDH Glossary) occurs when you spend your Action
tokens to aid a Group in your Power Structure against an attack.

Do bonuses for defense (such as the tripled Power from Good Polls) apply
to special abilities or Plot cards? No. Using a special ability or
powering a Plot card is not defense. For instance, if your Weird Groups
have triple defensive Power from Good Polls, they can use that Power to
defend themselves or other Groups in your Power Structure, but not
to power a special ability or Plot (such as Are We Having Fun Yet?) to
cancel an attack on you.

Destroying Groups

Can Groups with 0 Power be destroyed? Yes. The question only arises
because such groups could not be destroyed in the original Illuminati
game. In INWO, they can.

What is the cost to give Relief to a place with Power 0? Since the
cost of Relief is three times the printed Power of the Place, regardless
of its current power, the question should not arise; no Places have zero
printed Power.

Can a Group be moved to an open control arrow of a devastated Place?
Yes, it can. It gets no Action tokens and does not count for victory until
the Place is relieved, but you can move it there if you really want to.

Can a Devastated Group still give +foo bonuses and use other special
abilities that don't require actions? The use of "passive" special
abilities that don't require actions is unaffected by Devastation.

Disasters

Does a Place lose an Action token as soon as a Disaster is played on
it? Yes. Of course, if the Disaster is canceled, then it never happened,
and the Action token is returned.

How many tokens are removed from a Place that has more than one token
(Germany, for instance) when struck by a Disaster? Just one.

Which attack and defense
bonuses apply to Disasters? If the Disaster is an Instant Attack, the
only bonuses that apply are the target's Illuminati closeness bonus and
any bonuses that specifically mention Instant Attacks or Disasters. If
the Disaster is not an Instant Attack, all normal attack and defense
bonuses apply (including all bonuses specific to Disasters).

Discarding

A slight change to the "Discard" definition: "A
Plot is discarded
if played..." rather than "A card is discarded if played..."

When is a card considered "discarded" and capable of being recovered
by a card such as "Stealing the Plans"? The card is discarded immediately
upon use, unless it stays on the table as a link or a marker for an ongoing
effect. Plots affecting an attack remain on the table until the attack
is resolved. Plots that have a full turn duration remain until after the
turn ends. Linked Plots remain on the table unless and until the link is
broken. There should be no time where someone has to reference a Plot in
the discard pile to determine a current effect.

If someone discards a Group from their hand due to a failed attempt
to control (or for any other reason, for that matter) does this prevent
others from bringing out their own copies of that Group? No -- the
Group was never in play. Others are free to play their own copies of the
same card.

If you have two Goal Cards and must discard one, can you return it to
your deck instead? Yes.

Eliminating A Player

If a player is eliminated, who gets credit for destroying his Illuminati?
If a player removes a rival's last puppet with an attack, Plot, or special
ability after the rival's third complete turn, the rival is eliminated
and the player who removed the last puppet gets credit for the kill.
This counts for Cthulhu's Illuminati Goal or for taking over the Resources
of a rival playing the same Illuminati.

If the victim has not yet completed his third turn, he is not eliminated.
If he doesn't manage to acquire puppets by the end of his third turn, he
is eliminated then, but nobody gets credit for it.

Note that the Fratricide Goal lets you count eliminated Illuminati if you
merely help with somebody else's kill. The kill still has to be immediate
(i.e. after the end of the victim's third turn).

If I destroy a rival Illuminati and then Unmask as Cthulhu, do I get
credit for the kill? Yes. (If you're credited with destroying a rival
Illuminati, always put it in your destroyed pile, just to keep them guessing...)

Extra Action Tokens

If I'm playing the UFOs, place my two Action tokens, and then Unmask!
as another Illuminati, can I keep the extra token? In general, the
extra token does not go away until used. Once it is gone, you dont get
to replace it. (This situation can also come up when playing Resources
such as Eliza or Perpetual Motion Machine... the ruling is the same).

Exposed Plot Cards

If you give the card away, is it still exposed? Yes. Giving away
a Plot is not listed as a way to un-expose it...

Failed Attacks

What is the definition of a failed attack? An attack fails when
the die roll fails, or no die roll can be made. An attack that is cancelled,
made illegal, or called off isn't a failure.

Free Moves

When you buy a Plot card with Action tokens, is this a free move?
Yes. (And because it's a Free Move, it can't be cancelled!)

What's to stop someone from hiding extra Goals in his hand, and discarding
them before showing one Goal and claiming a win? Well, it's cheating.
Someone who would do that would mark cards or steal your Action tokens,
too... We don't have a specific punishment for it, any more than we do
for any other type of cheating.

What happens if two players, playing the same Illuminati, meet their
Goals at the same time? The rules say they can't share a win. Since
they cannot share a win, neither of them wins. Unless some other player(s)
also have reached their Goals, the game continues. Yes, this means that
if you cannot stop player A any other way, perhaps you can stave off his
win by a turn if you aid player B who happens to have the same Illuminati...

What is one of those two Illuminati meets two goal conditions at the
same time (for example, one of them wins using either their Illuminati
Special Goal or a Goal card) and my rival has only met one? It doesn't
matter how many goals you can meet at once, but whether an identical Illuminati
has also met victory conditions. If so, regardless of the number
of victory conditions you have met compared to him, you cannot win while
he has still met his victory conditions.

What if two Cthulhu players both destroy their last group, making 8
destroyed for each, on the same turn? Neither can win, so they
both lose.

Does it matter if a Group qualifies for two different "counts double"
Goals? No. No Group may ever count more than double toward the Basic
Goal.

How do the Goals on Goal cards interact with the Special Goals of the
Illuminati Groups? Read the cards. Most Goals cannot be combined with
the Illuminati goals at all. For an exhaustive explanation on combining
Goals, check out the
Combining Goals VFAQ.
The goals from different or multiple Goal cards cannot be combined in any
way, even if it's legal for you to have more than one Goal card... which
it isn't, unless you are the UFOs or have a Plot card that allows multiple
Goals!

If a Plot or special ability changes a Group's Power or Alignment, does
that count for Goals? The rules say that Power changes count for Goals
only if they are permanent. There is no such note under Alignments -- an
alignment change that only lasts until the end of the turn
does
count toward (or against) a win at the end of that turn. However, after
it expires it doesn't count for anything.

Is that true even if the Group is destroyed? Yes. If you turn a
Group permanently Peaceful and destroy it, it counts as a destroyed Peaceful
Group for all purposes. If you turn it temporarily Peaceful until the end
of the turn and destroy it, it would count as a destroyed Peaceful Group
at the end of that turn, but not later.

Can you use the Templars' special ability on a Goal card exposed in
the course of an attempt to win? A Goal card cannot be directly targeted
during a victory attempt.

When are you supposed to expose your Plot cards during a victory attempt?
After your rivals agree they can't stop you. This is when they scrutinize
your hand to make sure you don't have illegal excess Goal cards or whatnot.

If I declare a victory, but am thwarted, is it still my turn? No
-- the turn is over and the next player's turn starts.

By a strict reading of the rules, it seems that the current player wins
on phase 6, but everyone else can only win on phase 7 of that turn, thereby
negating any chance of a shared victory. To solve any potential disputes,
the Turn Sequence has been clarified -- see the listing at the end of this
FAQ.

If you meet the conditions for victory, do you have to declare it?
No. You only have to declare victory when you want to win.

Can you play a Plot after declaring victory? The rules say "At
this point, if you have achieved one of your Goals, you must say so, to
give other players a last chance to stop you by spending their actions
or playing Plot cards." Doesn't that mean that only your rivals may
play Plots? Anyone may use Plots, actions, or special abilities
to thwart or secure a victory attempt. Of course, no one may make attacks
(those are only during the Main Phase of one's own turn) unless some Plot
or special ability allows it.

I'm Cthulhu with 10 Groups controlled and 2 destroyed, and I declare
victory. A rival plays Upheaval to thwart my victory. May I then
play a Disaster to destroy a 3rd group to preserve my victory?
Yes; see previous answer.

If my last puppet is removed and I reveal the Arise Goal, I stay until
the end of the turn, and then win. What if someone plays a card that
causes the turn to end before the victory declaration step? You still
win when the turn ends, because the Arise Goal specifically says so.
In effect, this text means that there is a victory declaration step at
the end of this turn whether it follows the normal turn sequence or not.

The rulebook says that if the Servants of Cthulhu destroy their own
last puppet, and it is their eighth kill, they are not eliminated -- instead,
they win. Do they win right away, or during the normal victory declaration
step of the turn? They stay until the end of the turn, and then win,
just like the Arise! Goal.

Immunity

Summary -- A Group immune to foo Groups cannot

be attacked by a rival foo Group,

have rival foo Groups aid an attack against them (including Assassination
and Disaster boosters),

get Relief from rival foo Groups

be affected by special abilities (even passive ones that dont require
actions) of rival foo Groups.

Immunity does not affect other Groups or Resources in the same Power
Structure.

Can you use special abilities of your Group on a rival that is immune
to your Group? No!

Does immunity to a Group also give immunity to a Plot powered by an
action from that Group? Immunity does not protect against Plot cards,
even when they are powered by actions from Groups covered by the immunity.
However, the immunity does prevent those Groups from adding their Power
to attacks.

For instance, the Discordian Society is immune to Straight and Government
Groups. Rivals can still use actions from those Groups to power Plot cards
against the Discordians, but cannot (for example) use a Government action
to increase the Power of a Sniper against a Discordian-controlled Personality.

If Discordia spent its action and an appropriate Plot to turn the Nuclear
Power Companies into a Government group, could the NPCs just use their
action to cancel the Discordian action and stay Corporate? No, because
when they became Government they fell under Discordia's immunity. It's
now illegal for them to do anything to Discordia. A Group cannot take an
illegal action, even if it would retroactively make itself legal.

Does immunity prevent that type of Group from interfering in your attacks
from your hand? For example, would Discordia's immunity prevent a Government
Group from interfering with Discordia's attacks to control a Group from
hand? No. A Group just played from hand isnt in the players Power
Structure, and isnt protected by his immunities. During an attack you
can aid or oppose an attack made by a Group that is immune to you because
you are not using your Power on the attacking Group youre using
it on the defending Group (which isnt immune to you).

Immunity prevents a Group from making or aiding an attack on the immune
Group. How about opposing an attack? A Group can oppose an attack regardless
of immunity (if it is otherwise eligible).

In Play vs. Just Played

What is the distinction between these two terms?

In Play: In Play refers to already controlled Groups or Resources.
A Plot is In Play while it remains on the table to mark its effect.

Just Played: Just played refers to a card being attacked to control
from the hand. This card is not In Play yet. (Also written as "just been
played" or "just played from the hand.")

"Inherited" Power

If a group (like Libertarians) inherits the Power from a group that
has doubled power (like New York with the Necronomicon), can the Libertarians'
inherited Power also be doubled? Until further notice the general rule
is this: A group that "inherits" power like the Libertarians cannot inherit
the doubled Power. Other Power modifiers still apply (additions, subtractions,
and changes) for Libertarians when applied to the card it gets its new
Power from.

Instant Attacks

Can Plot cards which increase a Group's Power, for one use only, be
used to help fight an Instant Attack -- that is, a Disaster or an Assassination?
In general, no, because such cards don't specifically say that they can
be used against such attacks. However, if a Group has a special ability
to interfere in some type of Instant attack, then Plots that increase its
Power can be used before it gives its aid. Note that some Disasters, like
Giant Kudzu, are not Instant -- defensive cards and Power-boosters
can be used normally in that case.

Can you remove a Zap during an Instant Attack? Nope.

Do you get the +5 rival Illuminati bonus on instant attacks? No.
The only things that affect Instant Attacks are proximity to your Illuminati
and cards that specifically say so.

Can you spend Action tokens to draw Plots during an Instant attack against
one of your own Groups? Yes. Note that you may not spend the
target's Action token; the rules say "The target may not spend any action
tokens, even to defend itself, until the attack is resolved."

Can you use a Plot control ability like the Rosicrucians' special ability
to select a Plot card during an Instant attack? Yes. (Note again that
the target of the attack cannot spend an Action token, however.)

Can you play a NWO during an Instant attack? Even one that would
change the Power of the Groups involved in the attack? The rules say
that NWOs can be played at any time except during a privileged attack,
but they also say that cards can't aid either side of an Instant Attack
unless they specifically say so. The most consistent answer is that
NWOs could, strictly speaking, be played during an Instant attack, but
would not take effect until the Instant attack resolves (which, as a practical
matter, means that you might as well wait until after the Instant attack
to play them).

Does card text which completely forbids a certain type of attack (e.g.
Dr. K'Taden Legume says that nobody can attack any of your other SubGenius
Groups "in any way") also prevent Instant attacks? Yes. For example,
Shangri-La cannot target a non-Violent Group with an Assassination or Disaster.

"Killed" Personalities

Is there any difference between "assassinated" and "killed"?
We
didn't intend any, but some cards (like the Clone Arrangers) refer specifically
to "assassinated" personalities, while others (like Moonbase, in the case
of personalities living on it when it is destroyed) refer to those personalities
as "killed." As far as we're concerned, the two terms are interchangeable
-- so the Clone Arrangers can bring back a clone of a personality
who happened to be on Moonbase when it blew up. Similar apparent contradictions
between other cards should be handled the same way, by treating these two
terms as interchangeable.

Knocking

The rules mention "knocking", but don't define it. What is it? The
term comes from euchre. It means to knock on the table to alert everybody
that your turn is coming to an end. The next player to the left should
pause a moment to see if anybody declares victory or plays Seize the Time,
and then begin his turn.

If you say "That's all", but don't actually knock on the table, is it
the next player's turn? Whatever your group wants to accept, as long
as it's clear to everyone. Fooling someone into thinking it's their turn
when it's not is not acceptable behavior unless it's a cheating game.

Links

Why would you want to link a Personality to a Place? Because one
of the two cards mentions some advantage to be gained by such a link. If
neither the Personality nor the Place card specifies a reason for a link,
we suggest that you just not do it, thus cleverly avoiding any pointless
"what if" questions.

Which links are permanent? Any link between a Plot and a Group is
permanent. Other links are temporary unless the card text says otherwise.

How many links can a card have? Each Resource or Plot card may only
be linked to one other card, unless the card text says otherwise. A Group
may have any number of links.

What, exactly, is an "illegal link"? A link is illegal if
it violates a restriction on one of the linked cards or a rule that limits
which cards may be linked.

If a Group is linked to an alignment Plot (e.g. Jake Day), and later
linked to the opposite alignment Plot (e.g. Straighten Up), is the earlier
one discarded? No. The two conflict, so the later one prevails
over the earlier one (see the Meta-Rules), but the earlier link has not
been made illegal.

Does that mean that if the later alignment Plot is removed somehow,
the earlier one is back in effect? Yes. For instance, if a Group
is linked to Jake Day, and then linked to Straighten Up, it is Straight
and not Weird. If the Straighten Up is removed (e.g. by Backlash),
the Group will be Weird again.

What about Plots that require a specific alignment, such as the Power-boosters?
If a Plot says that it can only be linked to a Group with a certain alignment
and the Group loses that alignment, the link is illegal. If the alignment
change is permanent, the Plot will be discarded.

Magic Attacks

What constitutes a "Magic" attack? An attack by a magic Group, an
attack using a Plot card that requires a Magic action or says that the
attack is Magic, or an attack using a Magic Resource.

Non-Instant Disasters

If you play a non-Instant Disaster (e.g. Epidemic, Giant Kudzu) you receive
both your standard attack bonuses and Disaster-specific bonuses. The target
gets all its standard defense and anti-Disaster bonuses, as well.

New World Order Cards

While NWO: Military-Industrial Complex is in play, the Recording Industry
gets Emergency Powers. NWO: Military-Industrial Complex then gets removed
from play. What happens to the Emergency Powers? Alignment changes
from NWOs are considered permanent. Thus, a Plot made illegal by the playing
or removal of a NWO card is discarded.

If someone plays a NWO card, then a new one of the same color is played
immediately on top of it, do any effects from the first one occur?
Yes. For example, if NWO: Apathy is played, any actions that were spent
to aid an ongoing attack would immediately become illegal, even if NWO:
Apathy was in play for only a moment before being replaced. The only thing
that would cause the NWO not to take effect at all is if the NWO card is
canceled.

Plot Cards

Can an action-canceling Plot or special ability be used to cancel an
exchange of Action tokens for Plot cards? No.

If I have too many Plots in hand, and I play one that increases my legal
limit (e.g. Unmask as the Gnomes of Zurich), does the new limit apply immediately?
Yes.

Can you spend Action tokens to draw Plots during an Instant Attack against
one of your own Groups? See Instant Attacks
for questions concerning the play of Plots during Instant Attacks.

If I spend Action tokens to draw a Plot, and spend the Rosicrucians'
action to select that Plot, and then a rival uses the Liquor Companies
to "prevent" my Plot draw, do I get any of my tokens back? No.
The Rosicrucians' special ability use was made impossible, so they lose
their token.

Privileged Attacks

Can "third parties" buy Plots during a Privileged Attack? Yes, but
they may not give or trade them to either participant in the attack or
play them to affect the attack (unless they can remove its Privileged status).

Power

Does an increase in regular Power also increase Global Power? The
rules explicitly say "no, not unless a card specifically says so."

What counts as permanent Power and what is printed Power? Printed
Power is actually printed on the card. (If a card has a "*" printed on
it, like OPEC, then whatever instructions apply to the * count as printed
Power.) Permanent Power is the net result of printed Power and any permanent
changes. See the VFAQ on Winning and Victory for
a discussion on permanent Power.

Resources

Some Resources must be linked to a certain type of Group (Angel's Feather,
Necronomicon, etc). Can you play these Resources if you don't have any
qualifying Group? You may still control the Resource (it's linked to
your Illuminati) but you can't use its special ability. For example, Angel's
Feather must be linked to a Peaceful Group -- if you don't have any Peaceful
Groups you can still control the Feather (and count it toward Goals), but
you can't use it.

If a Resource whose effect has a duration (such as Orbital Mind Control
Lasers) is destroyed, does the effect vanish immediately?
Yes.

Can I give another player the Center for Weird Studies, (or any other
unlinked Resource), after I've used it on my turn? No. If you
give a Resource away, it is considered linked to the recipient's Illuminati
until he can re-link it, and this violates the rule against re-linking
a Resource after it gives its benefit for the turn.

Results of an Attack

Say Cthulhu draws his Plot card for destroying a Group. Is it too late
to use a roll-changing card? Is it too late to use a re-roll card?
Yes -- once you have moved onto effects triggered by an attack, it is too
late to muck around with the dice.

In general, how can you tell when it's too late to change a die roll?
Is there a hard and fast rule, or just a rule of thumb? In general,
its too late to change a roll or cancel something if you've resolved the
results (Groups have been captured and moved, Cthulhu has drawn a Plot
card, etc) or moved on to other things (a new action or attack, a new turn
phase, a new player's turn, etc).

That is the rule of thumb for changing rolls and canceling actions, Plots
or special abilities -- but it is obviously subject to speed play. You
can't just swoop down on your target Group and move it to prevent your
opponent from using a last-minute play to make the attack fail after all.

When you re-roll the dice after the attack, are you resuming the attack?
No. The attack is over. The roll is merely to determine the results of
the attack. A re-roll does not allow for new interference, etc. Once matters
have gotten to the point of rolling the dice, all that can be done is to
use a Plot or special ability that forces a die roll modification or re-roll.

Returning Group Cards

Can you return Group Cards to your deck like you can Plot cards?
Nope. If, for some reason, you need Group Cards in your deck (for example,
to power certain Plots), you can legally choose not to draw from the Group
deck when you have the chance.

Secret Groups

The rules say that a Secret Group's master and puppets can always aid
its attacks. Does that mean "even regardless of alignments"? No. The
Group must still have either Global Power or an appropriate alignment in
order to aid its Secret master or puppet. The rule just means that a Group
is not barred from aiding its master or puppet because of Secrecy.

Is a Secret Group immune to attacks (or effects) of Resources? No,
unless the Resource is explicitly linked to a Group that cannot attack
the Secret Group. An unlinked Resource is considered to be property of
the Illuminati, which can attack Secret groups. For example, the
Orbital Mind Control Lasers can play games with the alignment of a Secret
Group, just as though it were not Secret.

Do the various "any attempt" bonuses work against a Secret Group, even
if the bonus comes from a non-Secret Group? No.

Likewise, can a non-Secret Group power a Plot on a Secret Group?
Yep. Even though the token came from a non-Secret Group, the Plot is directed
by the illuminati (deep and mysterious are their plans...)

Can a non-Secret Group use its action to affect a Plot linked to a Secret
Group if the Plot text provides for such an effect? (For example, can a
non-Secret Group provide a Science action to remove Frankenfood linked
to a Secret Group?) Yes. This is a function of the Plot, not the Secret
Group.

Special Abilities

What counts as a special ability? A special ability is anything
in the text box that is generally beneficial to the controller of the card.
All other text is flavor text (usually italicized) or instruction text.

Instruction text includes any special modifications to Power, Resistance,
alignments, or attributes, as indicated by a * printed on the card. It
also includes any effect which is generally detrimental to the owner of
the card (e.g. the Bobbies increase in the owners Basic Goal or Moonbases
killing of linked Personalities if Moonbase is destroyed).

Sometimes, instruction text is beneficial under special circumstances (for
instance, a self-destructive Servants of Cthulhu Power Structure can benefit
from Moonbases text). This does not change the fact that the test is whether
or not the feature is generally beneficial.

Do we have to count them if we don't want to? Specifically when attacking
Ninjas? Yes, you do. If someone notices that you "forgot" to count
a bonus, you have to include it.

During the roll off to determine who wins a speed play, can you use
cards like Terrorist Nuke or Swiss Bank Account? Nope, because they
add to your attack strength, not to your attack roll. Only
those cards that can affect the die roll itself will help you here.

Starting the Game

Does the Illuminati card counts as part of your starting 45? Yes.

Is there a minimum or maximum number of Groups required in a starting
deck? Not unless you have set house rules about it. Some players like
"finely-tuned" decks with only a few key Groups, but such decks are vulnerable
to Group-killing attacks.

You start the game with one "lead" puppet. Do you put it out immediately,
or is that the automatic takeover that you will get on your first turn?
Your "lead" is put out immediately. On your first turn, you get an automatic
takeover -- that is a different card.

Tournaments

Two people playing the same Illuminati may not share a Percentage of Goal
Victory (using tournament rules) unless they are Shangri-La.

Turns

What's this "in-between turns" phase? A terribly bad idea. The whole
concept has been removed in Version 1.1 of the rules. There is no such
thing as a time that is between the end of one turn and the beginning of
the next. We deny all knowledge. No such thing. Fnord.

Some parts of the Turn Sequence are still unclear. Sorry about that;
this version should be somewhat clearer:

Turn Sequence

Beginning of Turn

During this portion of your turn, you may only use Action tokens to buy
Plot cards, to power Plots or special abilities that directly affect one
of the Beginning of Turn phases listed below, or in response to some other
Plot, special ability, or action. Plots and special abilities that do not
require an Action token are not affected by this restriction.

Draw the top card from your Plot deck, if you wish. At the same
time, you may exchange Action tokens on your Groups for additional Plot
card draws.

Draw the top card from your Group deck, if you wish.

Make one automatic takeover, if you wish. Choose any Group or Resource
from your hand. You bring it into play automatically -- no die roll is
required.

If you choose a Group, place it so its incoming control arrow aligns
with an outgoing control arrow in your Power Structure, without overlapping
any other Group. You may not duplicate a Group already in play unless a
card specifically allows it.

If you choose a Resource, put it beside your Power Structure. You may
not duplicate a Unique Resource already in play unless a card specifically
allows it.

Place an Action token on each of your Groups that doesn't already
have one. Some Resources (the ones that have the word "Action" at the bottom)
also get Action tokens.

Main Phase

Attempt attacks or other Main Phase actions.

During the Main Phase of your turn, you may 1)make attacks, 2)move
Groups, 3)create or move Links, 4)give or trade Resources, 5)play one
Resource by spending an Illuminati action, or 6)trade one Illuminati
action for a Group card draw.

End of Turn

Use Plots or special abilities that happen "at the end of your turn"
(such as the Bermuda Triangle's special ability).

Knock. Rap on the table to alert the other players that you're finished.

At this time, any player(s) (including the one who just knocked) who
has achieved one of his Goals may declare victory. If someone declares
victory, any player may use Plots or special abilities to thwart or secure
the victory. Action tokens may be used to buy more Plot cards or to power
Plots and special abilities. However, nobody can make an attack (it's not
the Main Phase of anybody's turn) unless a Plot or special ability allows
it.

If no one wins, the current turn ends and the next player to the left
starts his turn. Play continues counterclockwise until a player or coalition
of players wins.

"Any Time" Moves

You may perform the following moves during any part of your turn, or
even during somebody elses turn, unless a rule or card text prevents it:

Trade Action tokens for Plot cards: At any time, you may exchange
one Action token from your Illuminati or two Action tokens from your other
Groups for one Plot card drawn from your deck. This does not count as an
"action" by the Group(s) that provide the tokens, and your rivals cannot
use action-canceling Plots or abilities to prevent it.

Use a special ability of one of your Groups or Resources: Some abilities
can be used at any time; others are limited to certain times or circumstances.
Read the card text to see how its special ability works, when you may use
it, and what costs (actions, discards, etc) you must pay.

Play a Plot card: As with special abilities, read the card text
to see how the Plot works, when you may use it, and what costs you must
pay

Discard any card from your hand or return a Plot card to your deck:
You may voluntarily get rid of cards. If you have too many Plot cards or
Goals in your hand, you must immediately get rid of the excess.

Give away or trade cards from your hand: You can give gifts or make
trades as part of your negotiation strategy.

Aid or oppose an attack: Whenever a player (you or somebody else)
makes an attack, you may aid or oppose it (unless something prevents you
from getting involved, such as Privilege).